Mr. Speaker, today is the 21st day of the hunger strike of Iranian political prisoner Nasrin Sotoudeh, the face, symbol and embodiment of the human rights struggle in Iran; a leader in the struggle for women's rights amidst the persistent and pervasive assault against women; a leader in the struggle against child executions, while Iran has executed more minors per capita than any other country in the world; and a courageous lawyer for political prisoners, while Iran has imprisoned more than 60 lawyers for their human rights work, until she became a political prisoner herself.
While the international community has focused on the Iranian nuclear threat, the massive state-sanctioned assault on human rights has passed quietly under the international radar screen.
It is our responsibility to stand with the people of Iran, to champion their case and cause, to let them know that the world is watching, that they are not alone, that we stand in solidarity with them, and that their just struggle for human rights and human dignity will prevail.